Iran dismissed in a Monday statement made earlier by US Secretary of State John Kerry that Iran should only help with efforts to resolve the crisis in Syria on the “sidelines.”

Iran dismissed in a Monday statement made earlier by US Secretary of State John Kerry that Iran should only help with efforts to resolve the crisis in Syria on the “sidelines.”

Tehran stressed that any role it would play in solving the Syrian conflict should respect the Islamic Republic's dignity.

“From the outset of the Syrian crisis, the Islamic Republic of Iran has said that a political solution will be the only option to defuse tension in the country, and has always welcomed strategies that would safeguard the rights of the Syrian people through Syrian-Syrian dialog,” said Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham.

“However, in order to take part in the Geneva II conference, the Islamic Republic of Iran will not accept any proposal that does not respect its dignity,” she added.

US Secretary of State John Kerry suggested on Sunday there might be ways Iran could "contribute from the sidelines" in a so-called Geneva 2 peace conference in Montreux, Switzerland, on January 22.

For his part, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was sending out invitations on Monday to potential participants the talks, but while he wants Iran to attend there was no agreement yet on whether to invite it.

However, Ban said in a statement on Monday that the final decision on the participation of the Islamic Republic will be made in a January 13 meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Kerry.

“We very much hope they will reach agreement on Iran’s participation,” the UN secretary general said, emphasizing that the active support of regional powers in the event is “critical.”